Collecting children's book illustrations

Whether you display them on the wall or treasure them in a portfolio, original artworks from children's books will never lose their charm.  

 

An ink and watercolour illustration by the Australian artist Ida Rentoul Outhwaite for Chimney Town (1934) by Tarella Quin Daskein. This is from a set of illustrations by Outhwaite that are estimated to fetch £5,000-£7,000 at Sotheby's

If your budget is limited or the original artwork of your favourite illustrator is scarce or unavailable, consider lesser-known illustrators, whose work can be picked up from the low hundreds of pounds. Names to look out for include John Hassall, Margaret Tarrant and Rene Cloke from the first half of the 20th century, and Barbara Brown, Anne Mortimer and Ronald Searle from the second half.

Collecting silhouettes

Historically, silhouetteshave had a bad press. So 'cheap' was the art form considered in 18th century France that it was named after a famously stingy minister of finance, Etiennede Silhouette. Yet despite its reputation, the charming depictions won over not just the masses but noblemen and royalty, too.

Scandinavian 20th-century glass

Over the past few decades, mid 20th-century Scandinavianglass has become increasingly collectable and valuable. Brightly coloured, mould-blown pieces are still fetching low sums because so many were produced, but the best handmade pieces by known designers can be worth thousands of pounds.

Nanny Still for Riihimäen Lasi Oy

During the 1930s, Scandinavian designers strove to produce glass that had a handcrafted quality despite being mass produced and affordable. The success of this initiative led to a boom in glass design, production and export, which, in turn, led to Scandinavian style becoming increasingly influental. Across the world the organically shaped, thick-walled, clear-cased pieces created in Scandinavia were imitated and adapted by a host of factories and designers.

Papier-mâché and composition antique dolls

Hand made papier-mâché was used in France for dolls'heads as early as the 16th century. From c. 1810 the German Toy Factories at Sonneberg began to mass-produce moulded dolls' heads in the material using a pressure process that eliminated hand kneading. Papier-mâché dolls were popular until the 1870sand are now much-collected. Those with moulded heads were described as "milliners' models", for reasons that have not been established. 

Antique Papier Mache Doll Leather Body

Antique posters

The fascination with speed and technologyextended to poster design as to other media in the period. The most common subjects were ships, cars and trains: indeed , a thematic approach to collecting is a valid alternative to concentrating on the work of particular artists.

Alfred Leete poster for London Transport

The curvilinear extravagances evident in Art Nouveau poster design had vanished entirely by 1920. In their place came the use of cubistic and geometric symbols. The French artist Adolphe-Jean-Marie Mouron (better known as Cassandre) was the leading exponent. Another Frenchman, Charles Gesmar (1900-28), made posters for the Folies-Bergere and the music hall singer Mistinguett - the subject of many posters of the period.

Object of the day: Memphis Group "Super" Table Lamp by Marine Bedin. (c. 1981 Italy)

Medium
Fibreglass, enamel, steel and rubber.
Signed/Inscribed/Dated Metal Label to base.
Dimensions 42.00cm wide 30.00cm high 9.00cm deep (16.54 inches wide 11.81 inches high 3.54 inches deep)
Literature Lit- Barbara Radice “Memphis” London 1985. P.104
Description / Expertise Martine Bedin for Memphis.
“Super” Table Lamp.
Fibreglass, enamel, steel and rubber.
Metal Label to base.
Designed 1981
H 30 cms X W 42 cms x 9 cms

Lit- Barbara Radice “Memphis” London 1985. P.104
Price gbp 2400.00 (Pound Sterling)

Architectural antiques

Thirty years ago, the term architectural antique had yet to become part of the vernacular of the antiques world. Such items as Victorian fireplaces and chimney pieces, cast-iron jardinières, wrought-iron gates and garden seating were available in great quantity at low prices and generally came under the heading of salvage.

19th century bench with branch and snake pattern.  Made by Scottish iron founders McDowell, Stevens & Co, Glasgow 1840.

But with the passion we now have for recreating the past, all these objects have acquired value. Architectural salvage has become very big business and collectors are prepared to pay large sums of money for the right piece.

Antique settees and sofas

The settle, an elongated form of the wainscot chair, was the earliest form of seat furniture to accommodate two or more people. In England settles were made principally in oak and date back to c. 1500. Most extant examples date from the 17th and 18th centuries and are of joined and pegged construction. Settles were popular from c. 1700 in America, were pine and walnut were used as alternatives to oak.

Edwardian inlaid mahogany double chair back settee

The more comfortable chair-back settee evolved from the settle in the first half of the 18th century.Found principally in walnut before c.1735 and in mahogany through the Chippendale period, these were generally made in double or triple chair-back form, and in most cases their design corresponds exactly with that of chairs. The other main 18th century development from the settle was the fully upholstered,long seat or settee with a carved frame, where the wood was exposed (show-wood).

Antique Chelsea Porcelain

The Chelsea factory was established c.1745 by Nicholas Sprimont, a Flemish silversmith. Coloured tablewares predominated. The fine soft-paste body was initially very glassy, becoming cloudier in the Raised Anchor period (1749-52). Chelsea porcelains highly esteemed and fetches high prices.

Chelsea porcelain asparagus tureen with a lid

The influence of contemporary silver was most strongly felt from 1745 to 1754. A number of moulded shapes were copied directly from silver originals in the Triangle period (c.1745-49), including the much-copied goat and bee jug. By the late 1750s the silver influence had become more generalized.

Vintage Coca-Cola memorabilia: Original or fake?

Bottles, trays, openers, tiny cars and trucks, calendars and signs are just a few of the pieces Coca-Cola has produced over the span of its 126-year history. While these marketing and advertising items were never intended to be collectors’ items, their presence in people’s lives has gained them sentimental as well as real dollar value the world over. And for some people, amassing Coca-Cola keepsakes has become a lifelong passion.

Valuable, early pieces of Coca-Cola memorabilia are often reproduced or faked. Fortunately knowledge of Coke's changing designs can often help to date and authenticate pieces, as many fakes are not accurate. Further confusion arises as some companies who produced Coke advertising in the early 20th century used outdated logos. Pieces by such companies may seem to be earlier than they are but they are not actually fakes.Compare your piece to authenticated originals in reference books and look for differences in the detail. If you can't find an authenticated example of your piece in a reference book, you may have what is known as a 'fantasy'. Such pieces were never released by Coke and have been subsequently invented by forgers.


Forgers sometimes produce Coca-Cola items such as gumball machines, cash registers, penny scale or cast iron banks and toys. But, one should know that these items are pure fake for the simple reason - Coca-Cola company never produced any of those items. So it is impossible to find them as the authenticated items.

What makes antique fashion valuable?

As more and more people buy into the vintage trend, distinctive and well-made fashion accessories have increased in value. The greatest prices are likely to be paid for pieces made by couture houses, but stylish items from other makers can be surprisingly valuable too.

If you are planning to sell, bear in mind that while some collectors buy shoes and accessories to record developments in fashion or because they like the work of the particular designer, most people buy to wear. For many, wearing a vintage accessory is an easy way to add an individual touch to a modern outfit and there is a young and enthusiastic market for pieces such as handbags, scarves, shoes and ties.

Antique copper, brass and pewter

Today many copper, brass and pewter items are obsolete because people are no longer using these objects. However, because they add visual warmth and charm to a home, attractive pieces in good condition still appeal to collectors.

17th century Dutch brass candlesticks

Copper and brass objects became common in the home during the 17^th and 18^th centuries and these early pieces are the most desirable for buyers today. Items from the 19^th and the early 20^th centuries are typically not as valuable. Many people keep their brass and copper highly polished, which removes patina. Unlike silver, most brass and copper objects were unmarked until the Companies Act of 1862. This can make dating difficult, but not impossible, if you know what you are looking for. 

Dating antiques: Late 19th-century style

As the century progressed, and countries such as Italy and Germany became unified, a sense of nationalism pervaded in Europe. This led to a revival of the dominant styles of the previous 500 years, including Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo. New methods of mass production made goods more affordable and available but it also provoked the Arts and Crafts movement as a reaction against it.

Motifs from architecture

The first of these revival styles was Neo-Gothic. Motifs taken from architecture, such as pointed arches, latticework and quatrefoils, and heraldy, were used on furniture, fabrics and tablewares. Stained glass was revived for domestic use.

In France and Italy, there was a return to the Renaissance style. Oak and walnut furniture was carved with spindles and fretwork. Meissen and Sèvres produced porcelain decorated with classical figures, grotesques and scarabs. In Britain, many factories began making a form of richly glazed ceramic known as ‘majolica’. Its name was based on that of maiolica, a type of tin-glazed earthenware produced in Italy from the Renaissance period.

The object of the day: Flowers on a marble ledge by Elise Bruyere

Flowers on a marble ledge (1776 to 1847 France)
by Elise Bruyere  (1776-1847)

Medium
Oil on canvas

Dimensions
26.00cm wide 37.00cm high (10.24 inches wide 14.57 inches high)

Condition
Good

Description / Expertise
Élise Bruyère was the daughter of Jean-Jacques le Barbier, who was a noted writer, illustrator and painter of French historical scenes. Both Élise and her sister, who was also a painter studied with their father and subsequently with Jan Frans van Dael in his studio at the Sorbonne University. She exhibited at the Paris Salon from 1798 and was to become highly regarded in the male dominated art scene of the early Nineteenth Century, winning a second-class medal in 1827.

The care of antique works on paper

Porcupine, 1951, woodcut by Leonard Baskin

All works on paper have special needs; some problems, such as the damage caused by sunlight, have been touched on above, but this needs emphasis, and other risks need to be mentioned. Whether used for drawings, watercolours, prints or books, the healthy survival of paper, or otherwise, depends upon its quality. Until the early nineteenth century paper was made from linen rags, and the cellulose content in linen meant that added chemicals were unnecessary: this type of paper is the most resilient.
Paper made from wood pulp, as much was from the 1840s onwards, included lignin, an acidic light-sensitive substance which eventually turns the paper brown and brittle, while certain methods of sizing paper, and bleaching it, have also caused susceptibility to damage.

Antique Art Deco ceramics

Bright colours and attractive white and cream glazes are the keynotes of Art Deco ceramics. Pottery and tableware took on bold geometric shapes with attractive hand-finished decoration. Brightly coloured glazes were popular in America. China figures were produced in great numbers: favourite subjects were modern women, naked or scantily dressed, sporting figures and animals.

In England the Doulton Lambeth potteries made small bone china figures that maintained a cautious balance between traditional crinolined lady and the modern woman. Figures by Phoebe Stabler, Richard Garbe and Gilbert Bayes are especially collectable. The Wedgewood range of vases, bowls, covered boxes and inkstands, many designed by the New Zealander Keith Murray, epitomize machine age geometry, enhanced by monochrome matt glazes of subdued green, grey-blue and ivory.

Toby jugs

The jug was probably named and modelled after ‘Sir Toby Philpot’ a legendary 18th century drinker, who also made an appearance in Francis Fawkes song ‘The Brown Jug’. It has also been suggested that Sir Tony Belch, a character in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, may have influenced the choice of name.

The first Toby jugs were made in the 1760s in Staffordshire, an area already known for the manufacture of Earthenware figures. Today, one of the most desirable of the early Staffordshire Toby jugs is the so-called Ralph Wood-type. Credited with the invention and spread of the jug, Ralph Wood I produced well-modelled figures decorated with translucent coloured glazes. He was amongst the first English potters to mark his work and Wood signed Toby jugs are particularly sought-after. An unmarked Ralph Wood I jug is usually worth over £1,000, depending on condition, but his rare ‘Thin Man’ jugs can be worth double. Jugs marked with a Mould number are often more valuable and examples signed by Wood command a premium, sometimes over £2,500.

Antique English slipware

Slipware is a type of pottery that particularly flourished in England in the 17th century and the early years of the 18th century. Essentially, it is red or buff earthenware decorated with white or coloured slip (diluted clay) that contrasts with the body. A yellowish lead glaze is characteristic.

Decoration took the form of slip-trailing, applied mouldings or sgraffito. In some areas combed (zig-zag), feathered and marbled patterns were favoured from the early 18th century.

What makes glass valuable?

The discovery that a simple mixture of sand (silica) and sodium carbonate could make glass is attributed to the Mesopotamians 5,000 years ago. We still depend on this formula today, exploring its versatility and beauty in countless ways.

Age is not an accurate barometer of value when assessing glass. A colourful 1950s Murano vase might be worth more than a 2nd century AD Roman glass phial. The assumption that a roughly made piece must be old, or that glass full of bubbles is an antique, isn't necessarily true either.

Antique and vintage dance cards

Dance cards became popular items at balls and assemblies during the early 19th century. They were created as a way for a lady to keep track of the gentleman to whom she had promised dances in the course of the evening, and afterwards served as a momento of the occasion.

Dance cards were generally made of paper or card, although sometimes had elaborate covers of bone, ivory, silver or wood, and were small enough to be readily portable. They were generally given only to ladies.Often a small pencil was attached by a cord to the card. The cord also allowed the card to be suspended from a lady's wrist or belt.